Cate and Ryan are getting at it once again. Ryan was really determined to get Cate pregnant and Cate was just happy to just be getting it. They were both off from work so that they could get ready for the festival that was coming up but they just couldn't seem to get their hands off eachother. Ryan falls to the side of Cate as they both are breathing heavily.
"I can get use to this trying for a baby thing." Ryan tells her.
There's a knock downstairs on the door and Baze walks in. "Yo! Cate, are you home?"
Ryan groans and lays back down. "He's just here for the tickets." Cate assures him.
Lauren walks in without knocking and sees Cate in her cover up and Ryan without his shirt. "WHOA! Okay!" She says, covering her eyes. "I did not need to see this."
"Lauren!" Cate yells".
"I'm going to go shower." Ryan jumps up and runs to the bathroom. Cate stands up and puts her robe on.
"Dad's here for the tickets." Lauren tells her with her eyes still covered.
"Yeah, I heard him." Cate says, as she walks over and pushes Lauren out of the room. Cate turns back around and grabs her pills that are hiding under some clothes. She takes one and grabs the water.
"Cate!" Baze yells again. "Good morning! Good morning! Good morning!" Baze walks in dressed in a suit and tie with Lux and Tasha running in from behind him.
Cate runs downstairs. "I'm sorry. I should have sent these over with Lux last night. I've just been so busy organizing the concert." She grabs the bag of tickets and them to Lux. "We have tickets and VIP passes to get you in the back and thank you for chaperoning." Cate says sincerely to Baze.
"You're welcome." Lux, Tasha, and Lauren start digging through the bag to get all their cool stuff.
"And the meaning of that thank you is that you actually chaperone."
"Cate, it's a concert. I don't think they will get into any trouble." Cate looks over at Lux who is putting the VIP pass around Tasha's neck just as the front door swings open.
"Yoo-hoo!" Cate's mom, Laverne yells as she comes in carrying a basket full of baby stuff. "I can't believe I am going to be a grandma!"
Lux and Lauren look at eachother with their mouths wide open and watch as Cate's mom puts the basket down on the table. "Mom." Cate says.
Baze looks confused, too. "Mom, you're pregnant!?" Lauren asks.
"No. No." Cate says, quickly, shaking her head.
"They're still just trying at this point." Laverne tells them. "This is just a little something to help the process along."
Lauren and Lux still couldn't believe what they were hearing. "So, you're trying?" Baze asks.
"Um, you know, you guys have the tickets so you should probably just go." Lauren and Lux couldn't move as they watch Laverne wrap boas and crap around Cate. Tasha grabs them both and leads them towards the door. Baze takes one last look and then follows the girls out of the house.
At school, Baze pulls up in the parking lot and they all get out.
"Hey, Cate gave us a few extra tickets." Tasha tells them as Lux opens the back of the jeep to get their bags. "Should we invite boys? I don't know who to bring but maybe you could ask Jones. You two are hitting it off again, huh?"
"Yeah, well, I'm not. I'm going solo. Maybe I'll meet someone there." Lauren tells them.
"Or not." Baze grins as he hands Lauren her bag and she just rolls her eyes at her dad.
"You better do something, dude, or you are going to end up like Baze here." Tasha laughs. "Old and single."
Baze slams the back door of his jeep and follows the girls towards the school. "First off I am not permanently single, and second Tasha is right. You should definitely try it again with Jones. He's a good dude and you can't wait for someone else who isn't an option."
Lux glares back at Baze. "Me? What about you?"
"What?" Baze asks, confused. "Cate? I am not hung up on Cate. I've dated lots of other women."
Lux snorts. "Who, like Abby, Cate's sister. Or Trina, Cate's boss, or Paige, Cate's boyfriend's sister? No, I'm not seeing a pattern here at all."
"That's messed up." Tasha laughs.
"Hey, I'm a single dad." Baze tells them as they turn to face him. "It's hard to meet someone that's not Cate related. But I can have a date with a non Cate person anytime I want."
"Fine. Prove it." Lauren teases.
"Yeah, bring someone to the concert." Lux tells him.
"I will. You know what? Lets all bring dates. I mean, there's a whole sea of guys out there." Lux turns around and sees Eric talking to another teacher. "Just find someone you like."
During study period Lux is sitting at a table with Eric for tutoring as he questions her on the book he has in his hands.
"Okay, so Chapter nine when Johnny says stay cold, Ponyboy, what does that mean?" Eric asks Lux.
"There's a boy that's cold and half pony?" Lux says not interested.
Eric sighs and puts down the book while he looks at Lux. "Okay, what's wrong? You hate this book this much?"
"No, no, no. It's not that. I just found out that Cate's trying to have a baby." Lux tells him.
"Wow. That sucks. I mean, you just found Cate." Lux scowls. She wasn't expecting Eric to understand. "You're probably not ready to share her with anyone else except your sister, even if that someone is the size of a burrito." Lux starts laughing. Eric did understand, though. "When my parents brought my baby brother home, I found this box in the attic and I wanted to ship him to China in it."
"How'd that work out?"
"Fantastic. He lives in Chang Hi." Eric jokes. "He owns a very successful noodle shop. It worked out for everyone." Lux shakes her head and laughs just as the bell rings. She stands up and grabs her things before turning back to Eric.
"Hey, you know that K-100 concert this weekend? I actually got some extra tickets and I was maybe thinking about inviting someone, like on a date. Not that I'm asking you out on a date, but.."
Eric stands up to face Lux. He wanted to say yes so badly but he knew he couldn't. "Lux, I wish I could, but I can't."
"I know you can't with me, but it's not just me. There's like a thousand other people that are going to be there, and me."
"That's not it..well, yeah, it is. But I'm already going."
Lux smiles. "Well, then, we can go together."
Eric sighs and looks back at Lux. "Lux, I've got a date."
Lux is silent as she stares at Eric. Maybe this whole thing was just for fun afterall. "Oh." She pulls away from Eric and turns around and walks out.
At the house, Cate is going through the basket with her mom.
"So, Ryan told you?" Cate asks her.
"Yeah, well, he let it slip." Laverne tells her. "He's so excited."
"Yeah, well, that makes one of us." Cate was not thrilled with this whole kid thing and that didn't go unnoticed by her mom.
"What are you talking about?"
"Nothing."
Laverne puts the stuff down and walks around to Cate. "Alright. Start talking, Cate, or I'm going to get the wine and day drink it out of you."
Cate rolls her eyes and looks up at her mom. "You know, Ryan wants to have a kid, and I just don't."
"But you're trying."
"Yeah, you know, Ryan is." Cate stands up and walks into the kitchen. "I'm still kinda on the pill." She says, quietly.
"Cate!" Laverne yells and follows her daughter.
"Mom, don't yell at me."
"He's going to notice, don't you think, when you're not getting pregnant."
"Yeah, well, lots of women, they don't get pregnant."
"Not in this family." Laverne tells her. "Just the sight of a man and two buck Chuck and I start ovulating."
"Mom, you know what. Nevermind." Cate starts pouring herself some coffee. "It's a long story. It's too long to get into right now. Look, Ryan, he just needs to think that I am trying right now."
"Why?"
"Well, because if I am not trying, Mom, he's going to leave me. Again." Cate says. She never said it outloud before and it was kinda weird and scary. The thought of Ryan leaving her, again, freaked her out.
"If Ryan finds out that you're lying to him about something this important, take my word for it, he's gone." Laverne tries to say as kindly as she could. She couldn't believe her daughter right and Cate couldn't believe herself right now. Her mom was right. That was another hard thing to think about.
At school, Lauren is walking down the hallway when she suddenly stops in front of Jake's old locker. She didn't know how many times she read his email, but she was so tired she could barely think straight from doing it. Jake was the only one she ever... she couldn't even say it. It wasn't worth saying anymore, anyway, because Jake was gone. She'd probably never see him again. But as Lauren continued to stare at the now empty locker, one of her teammates nudges her.
"Hey, come on, soccer practice!" She yells as she continues down the hall.
Lauren looks at her friend then she turns back to Jake's locker. She could not let him get to her this way. She had to move on like she was suppose to.
At Baze's work, Baze is sitting at his desk when Emma walks over to him.
"Nate, word." She orders him as she walks into her office. Baze gets up and walks into her office. "I heard you asking my secretary out to that concert."
"Is there some kinda of dating policy I'm not aware about?" Baze asks, sarcastically.
"I am going with you to that concert." She tells him.
"So, I guess not."
"It's not a date. We're trying to broaden our cliental and going after recording artist and atheletes. Mia Catalano will be performing there. Her producer is Haley Scott, she's a singer as well, and she has a husband in the NBA."
"Nathan Scott. He's the point guard for the Bobcats."
"Was. He just retired. He and his wife have a ton of money just waiting to be invested and I want to meet her."
"I'll get right on that. I'm sure Cate can get another ticket."
"No, I don't need an extra ticket. I need access." She tells him. "You have access, I have you, so get me backstage, introduce me to Haley, and then you can go on whatever stupid date you have."
Baze couldn't argue with her, as much as he wanted to, but instead he just shakes his head and walks out of her office. This concert she be fun he says to himself sarcastically.
At the concert, Ryan is on stage about to announce the performers.
"What up, Portland!" He yells into the mic. The crowd goes crazy and starts screaming and clapping. "I'm Ryan Thomas and I am going to be your host for K-100 Sugar Magnolia festival! We got a great line of bands for you this afternoon. The Radioactive Armadillos are here! And we got Ben Lee in the house! Let's here it for our next performer. She is here from all the way from North Carolina. Put your hands together for the one and only, Mia Catalano." Ryan walks off stage as the music starts and Mia walks up to the mic and begins to sing.
Baze, Paige, Lux, Lauren Laverne, Jones and Tasha are walking through the crowd. Lux is dressed in a short short shirt that shows off her stomach, covering up with a jacket, and her hair is straightened. Lauren's hair is similar but she is wearing presentable clothes that Baze would actually let her walk out of the house with.
"I don't like this." Baze tells them. "I don't like this new look."
"Paige gave me a makeover." Lux tells him.
Baze glares at Paige. "What? She asked me to. She looks hot, right?"
Baze looks at Jones. "Hey, little dude, hands off of her."
Jones just stares at Baze not knowing what he was talking about. Lux pulls Tasha a side. "I told you I didn't want a date."
"Uh, really, because your outfit says you do." Tasha tells her. "If you didn't get dressed up for Jones then who the hell you slutted up for? I'm going to call you Slux? Is that cool?" Tasha jokes as Lux walks away laughing. "I think it has a good ring to it."
"Hey, thanks for watching out for the kiddos. I have to go check on my boss." Baze tells Laverne.
"Yeah, no problem. What should we do first? Seats or cocktails?" Laverne asks Paige.
"Cocktails." Paige sings.
Baze looks at them with worry in his eyes and Lauren just pats her dad on his shoulder. "I feel safe, Dad." She says, sarcastically.
"Oh, p.s." Tasha says, walking up to him. "Meeting your boss does not count as a non Cate related date."
"Uh, actually, I have a date and she's meeting me here. So, success for me, Lux, and even Paige."
"Hell yeah. I'm not wearing any underwear for nothin." Paige tells him.
"Alright, now all we have to do is find someone great for you, too." He tells Tasha.
"Hey, what about me?" Lauren asks.
"We're never finding someone great for you. I can't handle that anymore." Baze smirks at Lauren's eye roll and kisses her gently on the forehead before he walks away.
Backstage, Cate is hanging out with Haley as they watch Mia perform.
"You know, she's incredible." Cate tells her. Haley turns around and smiles at her. "How long have you been her producer?"
"Uh, three years." Haley tells her. "Yeah, she was just a shy little kid with a hoodie playing keyboard when I found her. I had to really convince her that she could go solo, you know?"
"Do you miss it? You know, now that you're producing and all. Going out there?"
"Yeah, sometimes. But there's really something amazing about nurturing someone else's talent. Call it maternal pride, I guess. I have a seven year-old at home, I'm taking mommy turns." She laughs.
"You have a seven year-old?" Cate asks, surprised.
"Yeah."
"Wow."
"Pregnant my senior year of high school. I actually went into labor during my valedictorian speech."
Cate starts laughing. "Uh, I was pregnant, too." Haley looks back at her. "Uh-huh. Valedictorian. Yeah, knocked up by the quarterback."
"Small forward, Nathan."
"Nate."
Haley freezes at the similarites she and Cate had. "If you tell me you are pregnant with you second right now then we are officially in the twilight zone."
Cate smiles. "I had my second when I was twenty-one, girl, but we're trying."
"Ah, that's the fun part, right?"
Cate just looks up and grins at Haley as they continue to watch Mia.
Baze and Emma are walking towards backstage, well, Baze is actually walking further in front of Emma while she runs to catch up.
"Slow down." Emma begs him. "My heels are sinking into the grass. Date can wait."
"My date is waiting. Outside the gate." Baze walks up to the security guy. "Hey, man, my name is Nate Bazile. We have meeting backstage with Haley Scott, Mia's producer."
The guys checks the list and then shakes his head. "You're not on the list."
"You said Cate put us on it." Emma tells him.
Baze turns to Emma. "Yeah, she was suppose to me." He turns back to the security guy. "Are you sure we're not on the list?"
"You're not on the list. You're not coming in."
Baze takes a deep breath and turns around. "Come on. There's got to be another way in." He says as he walks away from the stage and Emma relunctantly follows.
Mia is finishing her song and the crowd goes crazy and applauses her. "Thank you very much." She tells them. "Now for this next song, I'd like to welcome a very special someone to the stage. She's one of my favorite artist of all time! Haley James Scott everybody!"
Haley takes a double take at Mia and immediately sinks down and Cate grabs her arm. "What!?"
"Surprise!" Cate yells.
"No!"
"Yes! It was Mia's idea." Cate pushes Haley towards the stage and she slowly but surely takes Mia's place and starts playing her song on the guitar.
In the crowd, Paige, Lauren, Lux, and Laverne walk through it, but as Laverne and Lauren continue through the crowd, Paige and Lux stop. Lux sees Eric and smiles. Eric smiles back, but it's Paige who notices him.
"Hey!" She yells to Eric. Lux looks up at Paige with a confused look. Paige and Eric? "Hey, you made it." Paige gleams as she runs over to Eric and hugs him tightly. Lux walks slowly over to them still trying to make sense of it. "Oh, Lux, you've met Eric, right?" Paige asks her. "Oh. Mr. Daniels. I met him at your basketball game."
Lux nods her head. "Yeah. We know eachother."
Eric looks confused and looks at Paige and Lux. "You guys know eachother?"
"Well, yeah, totally." Paige tells him.
"Paige is Cate's boyfriend's sister." Eric looks at Lux, dumbfounded. Lux rolls her eyes and turns her head. She could not believe this was happening.
Cate walks off stage in a panic.
"What's going on?" Ryan asks her.
"The Radioactive Armadillos have disappeared. I need to start calling for replacements." She tells him.
"I'll get your phone." Ryan walks to the van and looks for Cate's phone in her purse. Cate turns around just as Ryan turns around with Cate's birth control pills in his hand. All Cate could see was the hurt in Ryan's eyes. "Ryan."
At the seats, they were all finally sitting down and enjoying Ben Lee's song. Lux, on the other hand, couldn't keep her eyes off of Eric and Paige, who couldn't keep their hands off eachother. Tasha looks over at Lux.
"Hey, come on, you love this song." She tells her, but Lux ignores her. "Ben Lee is great, huh?" Tasha asks Jones.
"Oh, he's awesome!" Jones tells her. "This whole thing is awesome. It was awesome for you and Lux to bring me. I should probably stop saying awesome." Tasha laughs. "Hey, I'm going to grab something to drink. You want a soda?"
"If you can somehow find a way of making that soda a beer, then, yes, two."
"Oh, make it three!" Laverne yells from above them.
"I invited Jones because I thought you liked him. You've barely said two words to him." Tasha tells Lux.
"You're the one who asked him. I didn't even want him to come."
"Yeah, you're making that really clear. I mean, did you see him walk off? Even his hair looked sad."
Lauren peeks her head inbetween the two. "Lux has her eyes on some else, Tasha."
Lux quickly glares up at Lauren. "Who?" Tasha asks. "Do I know him?"
Lux takes her eyes off of Lauren who is just smirking. "No. It's no one. Lauren is just stupid. Where did Jones go?"
"Hopefully getting us some beer." Tasha tells her. "Hey, go help him before he gets thrown into concert jail." Lux sighs and gets up and walks away.
Lauren sits down in Lux's spot. "Any chance of letting me have a few sips of that beer?" She asks Tasha.
"I got you covered mini Lux." Tasha laughs as she wraps her arm around Lauren.
"Concert jail!?" Emma yells as security pushes them into the fenced in area of the concert. "You got us thrown into concert jail. Man, you are just out of a Scooby-Doo episode!"
"You know what? It's not my fault you don't have the upper body strength to get over a little fence! And don't you work out? A little biceps never hurt anybody."
"We're suppose to be signing Haley right now." Emma tells him.
"Hey, you know what?" Baze says, bending down next to Emma. "I didn't want to be here either. You're the one that railroaded my weekend! I was suppose to be on a date right now, not in some carny jail stuck with you."
A security guard passes by and Emma tries to get his attention. "How long are we stuck in here?"
"Until my supervisor comes."
Baze walks up. "And when is that going to be?"
"Whenever he feels like it. He loves Ben Lee." The security guard walks away and Baze sighs and sits down next to Emma. He starts messing with his phone to try to call his girls or Cate.
As Lux tries to find Jones, Eric runs up to her.
"Lux! Lux!" He yells. Lux starts laughing and smiles as Eric approaches her. "Hey, I was looking for you." Lux nods. "Look, I was just trying to move on. I was trying to date someone my age and I had no idea she was your aunt."
"Cate's boyfriend's sister." She corrects him.
"So, you and Jones? You two would be cute together if you gave him the time of day."
"It's not that I don't like him, it's just, we've tried it before and he just doesn't get me like you do. The whole Cate baby thing. I didn't even say anything and you got it."
"Yeah." Eric agrees and sits down on the ground. "Because I do. I get you." Lux sits down next to him. "And I get what you're doing even if you don't."
"What do you mean even if I don't? What am I doing?"
"You're picking the wrong guy. You did it with Bug and now you're doing it with me." He tells her.
Lux glares at Eric. "Alright, Oprah. Whatever." She laughs.
"No, listen. You're afriad of people not wanting you. Of people leaving you. So you pick people that it will never work with so that's the outcome. They walk away. That's the cycle. You plan on the one thing you don't want to happen to just prove yourself right." Lux looks away knowing Eric was right. See, he did get her.
"You know what?"
"Hm?"
"I was wrong. You don't get me." She lies as she stands up. "Nobody wants to be rejected and left behind. I'm not exactly a special case!"
"Yeah, you are." He says, standing up, too. "Look choosing a guy like Jones is breaking a cycle. And if you're not choosing him then for some reason you're not ready to break it. But if you are, pick someone who doesn't have to reject you. Give Jones the chance." Lux rolls her eyes. She did like Jones, but her heart was telling her one thing and her mind was telling her another, and right now, she actually wanted to go with her mind.
Lauren was finally able to break away from Laverne just as Jones came back with their drinks. Everyone had someone, even if Lux really didn't have someone physically by her side, she had someone. Lauren wasn't stupid. Ever since she seen and heard Eric and Lux talking in the hallway, she knew that something happened between them. But everyone had someone. Her someone left without looking back. As as much as she was enjoying the concert and seeing the love, she just wanted to go home. So as Lauren was scoping out the place for either her dad or mom, her eyes landed upon someone she least expected. Jake. Jake looks her way and gives her a small smile as Lauren does the same. She couldn't believe this. Jake was back.
In the van, Cate and Ryan are talking about what happened.
"Ryan, I am so sorry." Cate tells him.
"Did the truth ever occur to you!?" He yells. "Ever!?"
"I don't know why I don't want to have a kid. I don't know, maybe it's because I feel like a crappy mom already, or maybe it was because I had a crappy mom who didn't offer me one ounce of support during the hardest times of my life when I was pregnant with Lux and then when I was pregnant with Lauren. Or maybe it's because I just got Lux back, or maybe because my career isn't where I thought it would be, or because we've been back together for two seconds and maybe I just need some time to figure it out without you rushing me or hounding me or pressuring me.."
"Cate. You take all the time you need. Figure out whatever it is you need to figure out. I'm not pressuring you. I'm just trying to be honest with you." Ryan tells her. "But the truth is, if you don't have a hell of a good reason for lying about something this big I don't have a reason to stay in this relationship. Because I cannot be with you if I can't trust you. I can't. I can't do it." Ryan quickly gets out of the van before Cate could say anything to stop him.
"Why are you here?" Lauren asks Jake as they meet up in the middle.
Jake smirks at her. "I missed you." He says honestly.
"But you moved."
Jake grabs Lauren's hands. "I know. Did you get my email?"
"Yeah, I got it." She tells him. "I'm sorry I didn't reply back. I was..."
Jake covers her mouth with his hand. "It's okay. I wasn't expecting you to. I probably shouldn't have even came back."
"Then why did you?"
"I heard there was a concert here. I wanted to check it out. And, I found out your mom and Ryan were hosting it..soo..."
Lauren smiles up at Jake. She puts her hand up to cover his mouth. "I love you, Jake."
Jake steps back a little. He was a bit stunned at what he was hearing. "Wait. What?"
"I'm sorry I didn't say it before. I was surprised when you said it and honestly, it kinda scared me. But, I love you, Jake. I'm sorry for everything."
Jake reaches down and cups Lauren's face in his hand as he kisses her gently on the lips. Lauren pulls back and smiles at him before grabbing his hand again and pulling him away. They walk slowly passed Laverne and Paige who are standing by the stage in front of Ben Lee singing drunkenly along.
In the grass, Jones and Tasha are sitting together and sharing the beer Jones got for them.
"This is really fun hanging out with you." Jones tells her.
"Well, I'm no Lux." She says, handing him back the beer.
"Tasha, I didn't come for Lux." Tasha looks at Jones, curiously. "I came because you asked me to."
"What?" She smiles.
"Look, I've bene waiting around for Lux for like, ever. I said yes to you because I was tired of waiting, and because you're cool." Tasha looks away a little embarrassed. "And pretty. And it's hot that you can probably beat me up in a fight." He jokes.
"I could." She tells him. Jones laughs and leans in slowly and kisses Tasha.
Lux walks up and stops when she sees what they are doing. "Tasha?"
Tasha pulls away and looks at Lux. Lux doesn't stick around and she walks away. "Lux!" Tasha yells, jumping up to follow her. "It's not what you think."
"I think it's what it looked like."
"I invited Jones here for you, but you said you didn't even want him here. You're not even interested."
"You don't know what I am, Tash! You don't know what's going on with me!" Lux yells. "Just because I'm not all over him you take him for yourself!?"
Tasha grabs Lux and turns her around. "I didn't take him, okay!? He came here for me."
"He said that?"
"Yeah, is it so hard to believe that he'd be interested in me?"
"No, I just didn't expect to see you sucking on his face!"
"Yeah, well, you can't have it always. You can't have everything and everyone." Tasha tells her.
Lux laughs. "What is that suppose to mean?"
"Look around, Lux. You've got Cate. You've got Baze. You've got Lauren, who for some reason looks up to you. And you got Ryan, and you got Paige giving you makeovers, and you have Jones pining for you!"
"Whoa. Where is this coming from?"
Tasha looks sadly at her best friend. "We were the same, Lux. Until your mom who never even knew you took you back. My mom knew me my whole life and still didn't want me. So, yeah, maybe I like Cate taking care of me, or Baze coaching me, or Lauren following me around because her sister suddenly has no time for her, or Jones looking at me like the way he looks at you. So, what, now what, you're jealous because Cate is having another baby? It's a problem I'd kill to have." Tasha walks away leaving Lux standing there watching her.
In the woods, Lauren and Jake are making out and Lauren is taking off Jake's shirt. Jake is trying to do the same, but stops.
"Lauren, are you sure about this?" He asks her.
Lauren looks Jake up and down and then looks right into his eyes. "Definitely."
Jake smiles and lifts Lauren in his arms, kissing her roughly on the lips and they continue to pull eachother's clothes off.
Laverne is walks aimlessly around the backstage away from the craziness when Cate walks up to her.
"How did you get here?" She asks her mother.
"Lauren isn't back here, is she?" Laverne asks Cate.
"Did you lose Lauren?"
"No, I didn't lose Lauren. I just can't find her. I texted Baze so she's probably with Baze."
"God, Mom, I have asked you to do one thing for me, and you can't even do that." She chuckles.
Laverne glares at her daughter. "Excuse me, I spent the entire afternoon playing babysitter to your kids."
"Yeah, it's called being a grandparent! You know that thing that you were so excited about that you couldn't help yourself and brought over an entire gift basket of sex toys."
"You know, I could really do without the tone, Cate. I was just trying to be nice."
"Yeah, well, you know what it's about sixteen years too late." Cate spats. "I'm sorry but acting excited about a baby now does not change the fact that you...you told me to give up Lux!"
"Oh, that's great, Cate. You got yourself knocked up in high school then you got knocked up again in college. You didn't want a baby to ruin your life, but you kept Lauren anyway and it's suddenly my fault."
"Yeah, it's your fault!"
"You didn't want Lux anymore than I wanted you when I got pregnant!" Laverne stops when she realizes what she just said.
"That's nice." Cate tells her. "To finally hear you admit it."
She starts to walk away but Laverne follows her. "What is so surprising, Cate? The truth!?" She grabs Cate's arm but Cate pulls it back. "That I didn't want to be a mom at eighteen? I didn't want to skip college, Cate, and never have a career. And I'm not the one that left, Cate, I stayed. I didn't walk out when you were six. I was there!"
"Do you even know why I agreed to give up Lux? Because I actually wanted to make something of myself and be somebody. I couldn't stand the thought of being anything like you. But I proved it my second year in college when I had Lauren that I could do it! I could have done it with two, but we may never know now. You know, that's probably the reason why I don't even want to have kids now because I don't want to look at them and blame them for not being where I want to be in my life, the way that you have always blamed me!"
"That's real great, Cate. Go ahead. But I kept you and I tired my best. Which is a hell of a lot you did for Lux." Laverne walks away leaving Cate standing there.
Later that night, Cate is sitting on the side of the stage, sulking, just as Haley walks up to her.
"Cate, you okay?" She asks, as she walks closer to her.
"My boyfriend hates me, security is looking for my kid, and I just had a blow out fight with my mom which makes needing a closing band sorta pale in comparison." Cate explains.
"I'm sorry." Haley says, rubbing Cate's back.
"Is there any chance that you have a booze hound Mom that blames you for ruining her entire life, huh?"
"No." Haley says, sadly. "My mom passed away last year."
Cate closes here eyes. She was instantly regretting what she just said. "I hate myself."
"No." Haley chuckles. "No, I'm sorry. What I'm trying to say is that I understand that moms can be tricky even under major circumstances. I adored my mom, but I never felt like I could live up to what she was."
"All I really wanted was to be better than my mom was." Cate says.
"And maybe that was all she ever wanted for you, too. I don't know. I can't help you solve your mom problems." Haley tells her with a laugh. "But I think I can help you with your band one."
On stage, Ryan walks up. "Thank you for coming, Portland! We have a last minute surprise guest." He tells the crowd. "Thanks to Haley Scott for making connections and convenient travel plans. Our last artist this evening is the queen of music festivals. And it's a true honor to have her here with us tonight. So, please, give a proper Stumptown welcome for the one and only, Sarah McLachlan!"
Sarah walks on stage and is welcome with a round of applause and screaming from the crowd. She takes a seat behind the piano and starts the song.
In the woods, Lauren and Jake are rushing to put their clothes back on.
"Did I just hear Sarah McLachlan?" She asks, Jake.
Jake laughs. "Yeah, I think so. Wanna go check it out?"
"Yeah, my grandma is probably looking everywhere for me before my mom finds out I'm gone." She buttons her pants and looks at Jake with a smile. "Let's go." She takes Jake's hand and they run out towards the concert.
In concert jail, Baze and Emma are actually enjoying themselves and are laughing and talking.
"I once went on this blind date and this guy had a hair piece." Emma tells him. "It fell into the soup and he just kept on eating."
"What are you doing dating guys with hair pieces?" Baze asks her.
"Shut up. You said you dated a girl in scrapbooks and made her own pickles. Though, I once dated this guy who had his own ant farm." She admits.
"Please tell me you did not spend the night." Emma looks away, awkwardly and shrugs her shoulder. "Oh! Alright, I just lost all respect for you."
"Oh, right, like you had so much before."
"I did. Sure, you are a scary, micromanage control freak..." Emma waits for him to go on. "That's it." he laughs. "You're just a scary micromanage control freak."
"Okay. Okay. Say you could scrounge up your ideal woman from scratch. Who would she be? You know what, let me guess. Pint size, big eyes, looks like that chick from Roswell."
"Huh. Alright, you first. What's your type?"
"Sucker for the classics. Tall, dark, handsome, has to have a really good business sense..."
"Snore.." Baze jokes.
"And has to be crazy in bed." Emma adds catching Baze's attention.
The security guard walks up to them. "Hey, lovebirds. We're on our last act. You're free to go unless you want to stay the night."
"Alright." Baze tells him before turning back to Emma. "Define crazy in bed."
"No."
"Come on, seriously." They just sit there and continue to talk. They were actually enjoying eachother's company and didn't want to move.
Behind stage, Laverne is talking to a security guard.
"We found her. She's fine." He tells her.
Laverne sighs gratefully. "Thank you." The guard leaves just as Cate walks up. "Lauren is okay."
Cate smiles and leans back on the bench next to her mom. "Thank you for finding her."
Laverne looks at her daughter. "I remember the day you told me you were pregnant. The first time. I remember where I was standing. I wanted better for you, Cate. Better than I had." Cate looks at her mom. "Better than I was. And you have it. Regardless of getting pregnant in college. You raised Lauren all on your own, with no one's help, but Baze's, but you got through college and you have a career, you have a boyfriend who loves you, and you have two daughters who don't blame you nearly as much as you blame me."
"Yes, she does." Cate tells her. "Lux blames me. And why shouldn't she blame me? I wasn't there. She had to go through all those years and all those milestones alone. And what am I going to do now? I'm going to go and have some other kid? I already did. I had Lauren and I got to go through all that with her. I still am!"
"Is that what's stopping you? You don't want to have a baby in front of Lux?" Cate doesn't say anything. That was exactly it. "Cate, you can't keep beating yourself up for not being there. All you can do is take the second chance to be there now. She'll be okay. They both will. As long as they know that you will still be there when they need you. As long as you just be here mom now." Cate looks at her mom and smiles just as Lux walks up to them.
"Cate?"
Cate turns and sees Lux's sad face looking back at her. "Lux?"
"Me and Tasha got into a fight." Lux cries. Cate opens her arms and Lux runs right into them as she latches onto Cate like she had never done before. Laverne walks passed them and then turns back around to see Cate looking at her. Cate smiles as Laverne starts to walk again and she rubs her hands through Lux's hair, lovingly, while Lux cries on her shoulder.
At the house, Ryan is sitting on the porch when Cate walks out.
"Lux asleep?" He asks her as he looks at his watch.
"Mhm. Baze just called. He should be dropping Lauren off any minute." She tells him.
"I don't know what to do, Cate. This isn't how I wanted us to be."
"Well, I figured out why I didn't want to have a baby." Ryan turns to her. "I just.. I felt too guilty doing it in front of Lux. And I've just been feeling really caught, like I'm going to be this bad mom or I'm going to be this bad wife, and I just feel like I'm going to let one of you down and if I had to choose, I guess I've been choosing her. Which I know is not fair to you." Cate walks closer and sits down next to him. "I'm gonna talk to both of them."
"Don't do it for me." Ryan tells her.
"Not just for you. I'll do it for us." Ryan puts his hand out for Cate to take, which she does willingly.
A car pulls up and Lauren quickly gets up and runs up the porch over to her mom and Ryan.
"Hey." Cate says, smiling at her youngest.
"Mom, I had the best night ever! That was so much fun!"
"Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it." Ryan laughs.
"Hey, you have a leaf in your hair." Cate says as she reaches up and takes it out of Lauren's hair.
Lauren giggles and hugs both Cate and Ryan. "I'm going to sleep. I love you both!" She gleams as she runs into the house.
"At least someone had a good night." Ryan jokes.
Cate shakes her head laughing and rests it on Ryan's shoulder.
The next morning, Cate walks into Lux's room with a plate of food. Lux sits up, tiredly, and smiles at Cate.
"Hi."
"HI!" Cate says while walking over to her.
"Pancakes?" Lux asks as Cate sits down next to her. "Who are you and what have you done with Cate?"
"Yeah, well, I never got to do it when you were little." Cate tells her. "I figured it's never too late to start now."
Lux smirks. "I'm sensing some baby guilt."
Cate nods her head. "I'm really sorry about the way you found out."
"Mm. Your mom's x-rated gift basket?" Lux teases.
"You know the last thing I would ever want is for you to feel replaced."
"No, I don't." Lux tells her. "Not by you anyway."
"By who? Jones and Tasha?"
"She was right. I was being selfish with her, with Jones, probably you, too. I know the whole world doesn't revolve around me and not everyone is always going to be there."
"Okay, wait. I'm not Jones, okay? But I'm always going to be there. Always. No matter how many babies come into the picture and trust me I am not anticipating many. You and Lauren are already a handful." She says making Lux laugh. "No one will ever replace you, or your sister. You know that, right?"
"I do now. But there is someone who doesn't."
At Baze's, Cate walks out onto Baze's balcony where he is sitting on the ledge. He looks her way and smiles.
"Hey."
"Hey." She says back.
"It was a great concert. Lux survived it and Lauren can't stop talking about it."
"Yeah, there was just a few issues but all is good." Cate says sitting in front of him. "I just wanted to talk to you about this whole baby thing. I just want you to know that nothing is going to change between you and me, or with Lux and Lauren."
Baze smiles and taps Cate on her knee. "I think that it already has. But maybe that is a good thing." Cate gives him a questioning look. "I felt something yesterday. That spark. That I haven't felt since.." He didn't even have to say anything. Cate knew who he was referring to. "You know, just hearing that you and Ryan are trying to have a baby and knowing that you've already moved on, it just helped me out a lot. To moving on." He says, putting his beer out and handing Cate one, too.
Cate smiles, nervously. "To moving on." She says, unsure, as she looks at Baze. Baze was just making this so much harder that it hurt.
In Lauren's room, Lux walks in with her school books and goes to Lauren's computer. She didn't have a computer, yet, so she just uses Lauren, except Lauren left something up that she may not want anyone to see. 'I had a great night with you last night. It was amazing. I can't wait to see you again so we can do it all over. I love you, Lauren Bazile. Jake' Lux kept reading the email over and over again. She was hoping Jake wasn't talking about what she was thinking he was talking about.